Power outage forces closure of University Centre

UMSU University Centre (UC) on the Fort Garry campus will remain closed Tuesday as crews continue work to restore power following an outage that left the entire facility without electricity Monday.

The building lost power and access was restricted before noon.

University of Manitoba spokesperson John Danakas said Monday the outage was caused by a faulty transformer and initially expected power to be restored by the end of the day.

However, shortly after 5 p.m. a university release said temporary measures were not sufficient to power all levels of the building and access would be limited for a second day. The release said the electrical department is confident UC will return to normal operations Wednesday.

Danakas said electrical crews are running new power lines to bypass the failed transformer, with a priority on restoring power to fridges, coolers, and kitchen areas.

It is “always challenging to have something like this [happen] but the restoration of power is being conducted as promptly and safely as possible,” he said.

University Centre is home to a number of restaurants and food services, including Campo, which hosts seven outlets on the first floor.

The U of M bookstore tweeted before noon that it would not reopen Monday. It is scheduled to remain closed Tuesday.

Campus radio station UMFM – which is located on the third floor – is also off air as a result of the outage.

Other facilities on the Fort Garry campus, including the attached Helen Glass Centre, were not affected.